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Larimer County park offers tepees as another camping alternative

By Jessica Benes

Reporter-Herald Staff Writer

Posted:
08/28/2014 10:06:04 PM MDT

Kahlen Young, 7, left, runs Thursday into one of the tepees her family rented for their camping trip at Flatiron Reservoir west of Loveland. Her aunt, Robin Wykoff, center, mom, Sela Young, right, and little brother, Shane Young, 2, far right, help set up camp. The tepees are a new addition to the reservoir campground. (Jenny Sparks / Loveland Reporter-Herald)

Nate Young, 5, walks out of a tepee Thursday as his mom, Sela Young, right, sets up a sleeping area while camping at Flatiron Reservoir west of Loveland. (Jenny Sparks / Loveland Reporter-Herald)

The sprinkling rain shower Thursday afternoon didn't bother little Nate and Shane Young as they gathered rocks into a pile at the entrance to a tepee at Flatiron Reservoir campground. Nor did it bother their older sister, Kahlen, who had gone in search of large leaves to make an umbrella for her stuffed animal cat, Palo.

The siblings simply moved their play into the tepee and practiced lying on the mats they would be sleeping on that night.

Their grandmother, Willy Flom, said that as soon as she saw the notice on the Larimer County Natural Resources Facebook page a couple weeks ago that three tepees were available to reserve starting Thursday, she got online and booked two for her family.

She reserved two for Thursday night via the new online registration page, and one for Friday and Saturday night. She was joined by her husband, Claude; two daughters; and three grandchildren.

"I thought that would be something fun. My daughter (Robin Wykoff) was coming from Portland for the weekend so we thought we could go camping with the kids not too far away but not right in town," Flom said. "We have camped in yurts but never in tepees."

The tepees were open for the first time to walk-in campers on Aug. 15 but just opened to advanced booking this week.

Staff members started the process in December 2013 to get permission from the Bureau of Reclamation to place the tepees, according to Chris Fleming, a district manager for the campgrounds and open lands in the area.

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They also had to find out if they needed a building permit from the county — which they didn't because the temporary structures will be in place for fewer than 180 days. They purchased the three tepees from Colorado Yurt Co.

"Surprisingly, there's a number of tepee makers throughout the country," Fleming said.

Fleming said that tepee camping has becoming something of a trend. "You'll see a lot of tepees in the midwest; Wisconsin, Nebraska," she said. "We are not the first but we might be the first, locally."

"(The tepees) draw your eye as you drive by Flatiron," Fleming said. "I think it will entice the families to come in. I have a 7 ½ -year-old who is pretty excited about sleeping in a tepee. Our guess is, it will really appeal to families."

The family members who camped at the site Thursday are from Loveland and have done a lot of camping at Hermit Park and Pinewood and Carter lakes.

Flom's daughter, Sela Young, lives in Loveland like her mom. She brought her three children, Kahlen (7), Nate (5) and Shane (2). Her husband, Tim, stayed behind in town to work. He planned to join them for the evening meal and then return home afterward.

"Camping is not his thing," Young said with a chuckle. "He freaks out about dirt and bugs. He told our children to watch out for snakes while they were up here."

The family plans to hike at the Ramsay-Shockey Open Space, do some fishing and go boating on Carter Lake.

About sleeping in a tepee, Kahlen said, "I think it's great. I've always wanted to." She was excited to go fishing with her Grandpa Claude.

And if it rains while they're camping in the non-waterproof tepees, Flom said they would just scoot to the edges of the tepee or take refuge at the pavilion nearby.

"No big deal," she said with a shrug. "That's part of camping in Colorado."

Campers can make reservations online by looking for the Flatiron links here: http://co.larimer.co.us/parks/campgrounds.cfm#frc. Reservations can also be made at 800-397-7795. Tepee reservations are $35 per night with additional online reservation fees. Parking permits are also required.

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